Thursday, January 13, 2011

Dolphins talking contract with CFL wideout Emmanuel Arceneaux

The Miami Dolphins have signed three players from the Canadian Football League's BC Lions in the past two years, including Pro Bowl starting linebacker Cameron Wake. Now, they are close to adding another.

Reports out of Vancouver say the Dolphins are one of four teams, along with the Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings, and Seattle Seahawks, that are discussing contract terms with Lions wide receiver Emmanuel Arceneaux.

Arceneaux played four seasons at Alcorn State, totaling 99 receptions, 1,618 yards and 12 touchdowns while also running track. He received little to no interest following the 2009 NFL Draft and signed with the Lions as a free agent.

The Lions' third-leading receiver as a rookie, Arceneaux caught 63 passes for 858 yards and seven touchdowns in 2009. He followed that up with a 67-catch, 1,114-yard, five-touchdown performance in 2010.

Arceneaux has reported workouts for the Dolphins and New York Jets in late December and has since drawn interest from a number of other NFL teams as well.

While the Dolphins do have competition for Arceneaux's services, including two teams still alive in this year's playoffs, they have an established pipeline from the BC Lions and can point to Cameron Wake as a proven success story from the CFL franchise to the NFL.

The 23-year-old Arceneaux measures in at 6-foot-2 and 211 pounds, but he runs a 40-yard dash between 4.5 and 4.6 seconds and is not exactly what you would call a vertical threat.

While he is drawing interest from handful of NFL teams, it's still likely he's going to get a very inexpensive two- or three-year deal, with the deciding factors being signing bonus and opportunity.

If signed by the Dolphins, Arceneaux would join the Dolphins eight-man deep offseason wide receiver group in hopes of competing for a roster spot during this summer's preseason.

Arceneaux is obviously someone that interests the Dolphins, but he is not an elite prospect and certainly doesn't bring with him the dominant resume that Wake did.

While there is always a chance he could blossom given the right situation and tutelage, Arceneaux could just as easily be the next Ryan Grice-Mullen or Rolly Lumbala rather than Cameron Wake.